Wednesday, 2 August 2017

When you go to church, usually you hear a lot of testimonies
and most times you wonder whether something like that would ever happen in your
life. The thing is God does so many miraculous things in our lives that we
sometimes don’t even realize it. But when that realization hits you, only then
you see what a faithful God we serve. Today something similar happened to me. I
joined an IIT for my Masters course with great expectations but I found the
experience to be a little underwhelming. You have to run around a lot to get
permission to use any facility even in your own department and getting permissions to use
other department's facility is a nightmare. Anyway so yesterday after a lot of
mails and waiting in the respective profs cabin for the permission for a particular facility, I finally
got my tests done. Once I got the results I realized I made a big mistake in
the sampling and hence my results were not usable at all. My heart literally
sank because I knew there was no way to rectify this blunder of mine. I was not
in a position to go ask for permission again because I knew if I try I would
definitely be kicked out. So here I was completely distraught and somehow God reminded me that a month before I had made a booking to use this
particular facility in some other lab but never got a slot for the same. But
again I felt that there is no way I will get a slot today itself. Even if I go
I would probably be humiliated or turned down. So I was very much hesitant to
even ask.

I asked God for direction and the Lord showed me
Philippians 2:16 and I felt that the Lord is telling me that I will not labor
in vain. Believing in the word that God just spoke to me I went to that lab all
the way praying for His guidance and His spirit to take over. And Lord answered
my prayers. The person who was operating that instrument didn’t turn me down
but helped me out immediately and performed the test for me which is completely
unexpected, going by the way things usually go here. I literally told the guy
there that I didn’t think you will help me.

Just thinking about
it now I realize that not only did God help me out in convincing the person
in-charge to do the test for me but also that He knew one month before that I
would need this test done today. Because to use any equipment in that lab we
have to do online booking, get a form, get it signed from guide and submit
there. I couldn’t do the whole process today because my guide is not here right
now so there wasn’t any way I could get her sign. But the Lord’s planning is
impeccable because a month back itself He made provisions for my work that I
had to do today. With the form that I had got signed from my guide a month back
I could use the instrument.

It is such a motivation to know that we serve a God that is so
good and faithful. He makes a way for us when we don’t even think it exists. This
was a big reminder for me that whatever happens my God is in control. Many a
times, we feel discouraged when things don’t seem to be happening and
everything keeps falling apart but during those times we must believe that our
God knows better. He can see the full picture and knows that these tests and
failures are necessary for the greater good. He shapes and moulds us so that we can become better versions of ourselves. I hope this comes as an encouragement to
anyone who is feeling demotivated or burdened with the struggles of life. The
lord will not let our labor be in vain.

Thursday, 9 March 2017

So yesterday we
celebrated women’s day. Well it is nice you know to have a day dedicated for
yourself. Last year when I was working we celebrated women’s day at our office
too. We got to wear casual dress and all our PCs had a happy women’s day
screensaver. Well what more could we have asked! I mean a screen saver! And to
top it off we get to wear something other than uniform! I mean what more could
a woman possibly want with her life. Am I right?

Now I just saw a video
about how this women’s day we women should get to flaunt it if we have it. By “it”
I mean our cleavage. Somehow it made me feel a little confused. When did women’s
day become about the freedom to flaunt our assets? I always thought that it was
a day to celebrate women and the fact that we too are people who are allowed to
have dreams, aspirations, to have the right to be born! I understand what the
video wanted to convey, don’t take it the wrong way. I totally agree that it is
OUR body and it is OUR choice to do whatever we want to do with it and when we
do so we should not have to worry about prying eyes or predators lurking around
in the corner. I totally get it. My concern is that this isn’t what it’s only
about! It is a celebration for equality.
We have come a long way from the first women’s day celebration but there are
still issues that we women face every single day which are far more important
than the freedom to flaunt our breasts. And this day is supposed to be about
that. One thing that I did like about the celebration in my office was that
they themed it around pledge for parity. Now that makes sense because even
today there are opportunities we women don’t get just because we are considered
the “weaker” gender.

Now you would have my support
if you start a campaign for equal job opportunities, or education because
believe me there still are households where a boy is given preference over the
girls for a good education. But if you make it about how I should be able to
wear revealing clothes then I guess you missed the whole point of celebrating
women’s day. Like if given a choice what would you want the right to walk
around with a deep cut blouse without anyone batting an eye or the right to
have education or may be the right to vote, or no gender discrimination, the
right to decide whom you wanna marry, the right to be recognized for the
efforts we put in every single day at our work place, in our house. This list
can go on. I think it’s more about letting women know that we as individuals
have a say in our lives that we can be whatever we want to be. Let’s not make
it as trivial as the freedom to wear a plunging neckline.